Date of Birth : Apr 21st 1935
After having a supporting role in 1970’s comedy, Catch-22, Grodin was cast in the lead role of the film The Heartbreak Kid, which was released in 1972 and gained Grodin recognition as a comedy actor. He subsequently appeared in several notable 1970s films, including 11 Harrowhouse (1974), and the 1976 version of King Kong and the hit 1978 comedy, Heaven Can Wait. During this period, he frequently appeared on Broadway, and was also involved in producing several plays, including Thieves, which he also directed.
In 1977, Grodin hosted an episode of the NBC sketch show, Saturday Night Live. He and the writers decided beforehand to play the show as if he had missed dress rehearsals and was clumsily ad-libbing his way through his sketches. Much like Andy Kaufman’s appearance on Fridays four years later, his comic scenario was taken a bit too literally by the audience, and he was never asked to host again. In 1981, he was landed in a role in The Great Muppet Caper playing Nicky Holiday. His 1980s roles included Neil Simon’s Seems Like Old Times, opposite Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn, and 1988’s well-reviewed comedy, Midnight Run, a buddy movie co-starring Robert De Niro.
Grodin’s career took a turn in 1992, when he played the nervous family man in the kids’ comedy Beethoven, opposite Bonnie Hunt. The film was a surprise box-office hit, and he reprised the role in the 1993 sequel. His next film role was in 1994’s It Runs in the Family (a.k.a. My Summer Story), which received only a limited release and was a sequel to the film A Christmas Story. After a 13-year long hiatus from film, Grodin returned to acting in the Zach Braff comedy The Ex.
CAREER
Fast Track ( 2007 )
Beethoven’s 2nd ( 1994 )
Dave ( 1993 )
Beethoven ( 1992 )
The Incredible Shrinking Woman ( 1981 )